


Lights in the River and Apologies.

by ChocoTacoTurtles



Category: Free!
Genre: M/M, iwroteharufromanautisticpintofviewcauseidkwtfimdoing!Emma, obsesedwithrinseyes!haru, the free! fandom screwed me, the homestuck fandom broke me, wtfamidoing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-09
Updated: 2016-06-09
Packaged: 2018-07-14 02:42:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,617
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7149419
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChocoTacoTurtles/pseuds/ChocoTacoTurtles
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Rin and Haru don't go to Australia, but go for a swim instead.</p>
<p>Forgive me if this sucks, writing RinHaru is like trying to figure skate with brand new skates.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lights in the River and Apologies.

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Everyone who gave up something they loved for the sake of something else](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Everyone+who+gave+up+something+they+loved+for+the+sake+of+something+else).



"Why don't you understand!" Makoto yelled. Haruka's face was completely straight. He knew he could be painfully stubborn, and Makoto knew as well and neither of them could do anything about it. Though, Makoto still acted as if he could. "You're so much better than this!" He was angry, that's for sure. They'd only argued like this once before. Over the exact same thing. About ten minutes ago. The boy who Haruka knew to never yell was now more angry than he'd ever seen him. "What do you mean I don't understand?" Haru asked, clutching his fist. His voice never raised. It never yelled. It remained the same throughout the whole argument. Nagisa pulled Rei away. "We should probably go." Haru heard Nagisa say. Rei stepped forward to say something but Nagisa grabbed his arm. "Don't." He whispered. Makoto gave them a "Go." Look, and the two boys left without hesitation. "I'm not the one that needs to understand. You are. You need to mind your own business!"   
"You're so good Haru. So good at everything. I would kill to be able to swim like you, yet you throw it all away, like its nothing." Makoto insisted angrily. "So?" So this argument is hopeless. "So you need to stop running away!" Haru's eyes widened. Makoto had never raised his voice like this. Haruka knew that he likely didn't mean it, but he still needed to get away. Makoto, at the very least, needed a minute to calm down. Things'll be better in a minute. They always were. So Haruka, finally getting his wrist out of Makoto's grip, ran down the stairs. Makoto didn't follow and Haruka didn't stop. He slowed down once he got to the river bed, and walked along parts of the river that weren't very crowded, looking at the small lights float up stream. It was so pretty. So peaceful. He needed to get away for a minute. He needed to escape into the realms of the water which kept him breathing and kept him afloat. Haruka couldn't hear anyone following him. He couldn't hear anything, actually. Haru looked down at his shoes as he walked, shoving his hands into his pockets. Makoto's words ran through his head over and over again and again. Makotos, and Rei's and Rin's and Nagisa's, and Sousuek's, and Ai and Momo and- So many people that wanted him to swim. Swim for time, swim for meaning. He only wanted to be free. The water was the only way he felt free, because in the water he wasn't under pressure. In the water he was just Haru. In the water, there were no words no insults, no hurting. Haruka wasn't paying attention to where he was walking. Just the serenity of the flowing water letting quite ripples out across the lake. Smack. He ran right into something. Or. Someone. Haru stepped aside "Sorry." He muttered, and walked onwards but the stranger grabbed his hand. "Haru." It was an unforgettable voice. "Rin." The man pulled his hood off to reveal a cascade of messy red hair flying in every direction. "Yo." Haru kept his face completely straight, hardly even acknowledging the presence of his friend. "I. I've got to go." He continued on down the river but Rin caught up seconds later. "Haru, what's wrong." Rin demanded softly. "It's nothing." The shorter of the two replied not stopping. Not looking at the fiery headed competitor of his. "Don't lie to me, Haru. I know something's up. You do that thing, with your eyes." The light from the lanterns in the river lit up Rin's own red eyes like roses in the summer. Haru's eyes met Rin's. The taller boy's fiery eyes were full of concern. "It's really nothing. You shouldn't worry about me."   
"At least sit with me for a minute then. You seem distraught." Rin grabbed Haru's wrist and dragged him over to a nearby bench. Trees draped over it leaning into the river, which was still alive with sparks from the lanterns being set in the water. Haru's mind seemed blank. Blank but for the sour green words that stung like a bee. "Grabbing my wrist seems to be everyone's favorite thing to do."He muttered as a breeze blew his hair from his face. "Huh?"  
"Nothing." There were a few more seconds of silence, except for the tapping of Rin's free hand on the arm of the bench. Rin eventually let go of Haru's wrist and the two listened to the quiet tapping  and seeing nothing but the water which resembled stars in the sky and the light from the lanterns that made Rin's red eyes glisten like rubies. The two boys sat for a minute before Rin spoke up "Did you and Makoto have a fight or something?" Haru's head fell to his own chest, and he stared at his free hand which lay limp on his lap. "Bingo huh.?" Haru nodded. "It's not that big of a deal, Sousuke and I fight all the time." Haru nodded "Yeah, but this is the first time. It's the first time it's been serious."   
"Oh." Said Rin, still slowly tapping his finger against the arm of the chair. "And I't weird to fight with him just because I. I." Haru didn't finish. "I know you like him." Rin added so quietly that Haru could barely hear. "And you don't?"   
"No. Not like that." Rin was now looking at his hand stretching and contracting his fingers as if there was nothing more fascinating on this earth. His statement was followed by more silence. Air blowing leaves around past their feet. "What do you mean, then?" Haru asked feeling butterflies in his stomach on the touchy subject. He hadn't told anyone before but Rin was good at figuring things out. "The way you look at him. You like him. And he likes you. It sucks you had to fight, but it's just part of being friends. He'll get over it soon and it appears you've already forgiven him." Rin said, still feebly and quietly as if a nearby fire fly would spread the news like butter on bread. "Yes. It's true. I've loved Makoto for a long time. But I don't any more. It's like. I need him there as a friend. If we were to fight like that over being in a relationship, who knows what would happen? And when I really need him what if he's not there?" More silence. Rin wasn't a good conversation starter, and Haru wasn't great at talking in general. "I'm sorry now that you mention your argument." Said Rin, pressing himself forward on his palms "I'm sorry for yelling at you at Regionals. You're right. It's your life. You should decide for yourself what to do." He added with no regret in his words. "But, Haru, I would like to see you be great. You pushed me for years bringing out the best in me. Without you, in Australia, I hit a wall that I couldn't get over. Because you weren't there. You weren't there to push me along. I'm sure Makoto feels the same way. You really don't even know, Haru."  
"Know what." The blue eyed boy wondered out loud. "Know how you've changed my life. You make it seem like your disability weighs you down, but it really makes you great."Haru looked up to find Rin's eyes on his own now. "What do you say we go for a swim?" Rin asked, letting go of Haru's wrist. "Will it take your mind of things?" Haru shrugged. "Sure. I guess." Rin stood up, brushing dirt off of his pants and Haru followed walking back up stream, against the wall of floating lights. Against the rivers current. The two boys continued on up the stream until it became more crowded with people. Makoto, Rei and Nagisa were nowhere to be seen. Haru pulled the hood of his sweatshirt back over his head. "I just want to be free." He muttered to the taller boy, whom he was now in step with. Rin just nodded because he was at a loss for words. Rin walked with his hands by his side, and Haru walked with his shoved into his sweatshirt pocket. At least Rin understands. Haru thought to himself. Or pretends to. He wasn't sure whether that was true, or whether he was lying to himself in desperation. And as they walked up the stream, neither boys talked so it would remain a mystery. They just walked and walked until they reached Iwatobi Middle School, which wasn't far from where they were. The pool was the same as it had been years and years ago and the summer weather caused the leaves on the trees to be a vibrant green when there was light out. But it was now about ten, so the leaves remained dark. "We should find the pool lights, to turn them on." Rin said after minutes of staring at the mysterious black water. "Mhm." Haru agreed. The two walked over to the small shed that belonged to the swim team (complete with bathrooms and a vending machine) and scoured the wall to find a switch. After ten minutes of hopeless groping, Haru finally found the switch that lit up the pool a fiery blue, the color of his eyes. "Well. There you go." Rin had his bathing suit in a bag with him, but Haru's was already on and by the time Rin actually got his on, Haru had already been through a hundred meter freestyle and was about half way from completing a 125. "What took you so long?" Haru asked, popping his head out of the water in the middle of the pool. Rin laughed. Rin cared. He jumped into his own lane and swam to the other end to meet Haru. The boy turned over onto his back and floated in the water swaying his hands back and forth to keep him afloat. Rin was swimming aimless freestyle going from one end to the other without stopping and Haru was just thinking. He thought of how he should probably text Makoto and tell him he went home or something. He thought of how he didn't. Haru ducked under the water and sank slowly letting the water envelop himself. I wish it could be like this all time. Haru thought to himself. Just me and the water and nothing else to pull me. He shut his eyes not realizing had been under for much longer than he should have been. He was forgetting to breathe. A hand grasped his and pulled him to the surface. "God Haru. Don't scare me like that." Rin dragged Haru to the shallow end of the pool and then pulled himself out so that only his lower legs remained in the water. "It's nice out here at night." Rin said making contact with Haru's eyes which shimmered with the reflection of the pool. "It's very peaceful without people around." Haru agreed. "Wanna race?" Rin asked as Haru. "Sure."  The two pulled out of the water and leaned over the edge getting ready to dive in. "Take your mark." Rin said. The three words that scared Haru the most, the three words that Haru loved the most. "Hup!" The two boys dove into the water. Rin pulled through not allowing himself to think. He released any anger he had at the moment on the water compelling himself through the water. Rin glanced to the side to see that he was neck and neck with Haru. He's not trying. He told himself. That made him angrier. The two boys reached the starting wall at the exact same time gasping for air in the exact same moment. "I won." Rin muttered. "No. I did." Rin and Haru both pulled off their goggles and threw them onto the pavement.   
"I'm pretty sure it was me."  
"No it was me." The playful arguing had no effect on either of them, and Rin shoved a wave of water onto Haru before he ducked into Haru's lane looking the boy in the eye. "What do you say we call it a draw?" Haruka asked. "Sure." Rin kept eye contact on Haru. He focused on the shorter boy's eyes trying to find something. Something to complete the big picture. Something to say. "Do you care?" Haruka asked. "About what?"  
"About the fact that I don't want to swim for time. I just want to swim to be free?"  
"Yes."  
"Why?" Rin thought for a long second then replied. "You inspired me for so many years, that to see you give up simply because you you didn't want to swim for the win would make everything I've done seem kind of stupid." Then he added, "And Haru because I- We- your whole team- We love you, and we care about you." Then, without warning, Haruka pressed his lips against Rin's. It was a shock, to Rin. Haru pulled away a second later. "Sorry." He muttered. "How long have you wanted to do that?" Rin asked, grabbing Haru's wrists. Haru wasn't making eye contact with Rin but instead he moved Rin's hands farther down his wrist so they were now interlocking with his own.  "Since you came back from Australia, and I realized how much I had missed you. Honestly, I felt like the years you had been gone meant nothing and that you were just another person in my life to leave, but only when you came back did I realize how much I had missed you in the first place." Then he added, "Sorry."  
"It's fine, Haru." The red headed boy said, smiling out of the corner of his mouth. "I've been in love with you since I first started swimming with you guys in Middle School." Haru looked surprised at this information. "Could you not tell?" He shook his head, no. "I followed you guys around all the time."  
"You were our team mate."  
"I was in love." Rin pulled Haruka closer to himself , and leaned over in the water so that Haru's forehead was against his own. "I'm still in love." Rin muttered, leaning in on Haru's mouth again. He kissed Haru with an aggressive manner that still remained soft, and Haru kissed back lightly. Rin used his lower jaw when he kissed pulling Haru into him, up against the wall. When Haru pulled away from Rin's mouth, he pressed his head onto Rin's chest and muttered a quiet. "Thank you." Rin looked up at the starry sky, wrapping both of his arms around the shorter boy. "For what, exactly?"  
"For taking my mind off of things." Haru said. Rin smelled like chlorine and grass. "Any time." Rin said. As they pulled out of the water, Haru realized that he didn't have a towel. Rin did, but it was slightly damp from his earlier swim practice. "Here." He threw it to Haru after he was done using it, and threw some shorts on his slightly damp suit. He didn't bother with a shirt, and Haru didn't mind. Rin's entire chest was ripped, he was probably much stronger than Haruka, though he couldn't be sure it wasn't just because of Rin's height. Haru grabbed his phone, he had a few missed texts from Makoto.   
"Hey, where are you?"  
"I'm at your house, you're not here."  
"Haru, where are you?"  
"We're worried." Haru replied quickly. "Sorry, went for a swim @ Iwatobi middle. Be home in a minute." He looked Rin in the eyes once more, his lava-like eyes glistening in the light before he reached for the light switch to shut off the lights. "So." He said. "Let's go home."


End file.
